Next of Kin

Truman Gates has left his home in the Appalachian mountains of Kentucky to serve as a Chicago police officer. When his brother Gerald, a truck driver, is killed by a gangster, Truman tries to pursue justice through legal channels. His older brother Briar arrives in the city determined to take revenge instead, creating tension between Truman's respect for the law and his family's code of honor.

The film was directed by John Irvin and written by Michael Jenning, with Les Alexander and Don Enright producing. It arrived in 1989, after Irvin's earlier films such as The Dogs of War, Ghost Story, Raw Deal and Hamburger Hill, and before Robin Hood in 1991. Patrick Swayze plays Truman, with Liam Neeson as Briar, Adam Baldwin as Joey Rosselin, Helen Hunt as Jessie Gates, Ted Levine as Willy Simpson and Bill Paxton as Gerald Gates.

Produced on a budget of about 12 million dollars, the film took in roughly 16 million dollars worldwide. It holds a rating of 5.9 out of 10 on IMDb from around 14,000 votes and the same score on TMDB from about 258 votes. A critics' rating of 5.5 out of 10 from 10 reviews places it slightly below the audience scores, though all three sit in similar middling territory.